Swimming-machine.



W. D. BROSSMAN.

SWIMMING MACHINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 14, m4.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

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SWIMMING-LIA CHINE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1915.

Application filed May 14, 1914. Scrial No. 838,535.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, WALTER D. BROSSMAN, a citizen of the United States by birth, residing at Berthoud, in the county of Larimer and State of Colorado, have inventbd certain new and useful Improvements in Swimming-Machines, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to swimming devices, and the primary object of the inven tion is the provision of a device which will retain a person upon the surface of the water, and which has associated therewith a propeller and suitable means manually operable for controlling the propeller for propelling a person through the water.

With the foregoing and other objects in view, this invention consists in such novel features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts as will be hereinafter more fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and claimed.

In describing the invention in detail, reference will be had to the. accompanying drawings, wherein like characters designate like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which:

Figure 1 is a side elevation of the improved swimming machine, Fig. 2 is an end view of the swimming machine, and Fig. 3 is a cross sectional view on the line 33 of Fig. 1.

Referring more particularly to the drawings, 1 and 2 designate floats, which are con structed of any suitable material, preferably of hermetically sealed metallic tubes, and they are connected one to the other by brackets 3 and l, which brackets depend downwardly from the floats as is clearly shown in Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings. The bracket 8, which is positioned at the forward end of the floats 1 and 2, has a bracket i secured thereto, which bracket has journaled transversely therein a shaft 5. The shaft 5 has crank handles 6 and 7 mounted upon its opposite ends, which crank handles are positioned oppositely to each other, so as to provide a device which may be easily rotated by the hands of a person. The shaft 5 has a bevel gear 8 keyed thereupon, which bevel gear meshes with a bevel pinion 9. The bevel pinion 9 is formed upon one terminal end of the shaft 10, and through its meshing engagement with the bevel gear 8, the rotary motion of the shaft 5 will be transmitted to the shaft 10 for rotating the propeller 11, which islmounted upon the rear end of the shaft 10, and the rotation of the propeller 11 will force the device for wardly through the water.

The shaft 10 is rotatably journaled in a bearing which is formed in the lowermost portion of the bracket 4. Flexible straps 12 and 13 are attached to the floats 1 and 2, and suspended therebetween, which straps are provided for supporting a person between the floats, so that the person may conveniently reach and operate the crank handles 7 for the propulsion of the device. The flexible straps 12 and 13 have one end there of secured in any suitable manner to one of the floats l or 2, they being shown secured to the float 2 in Fig. 3 of the drawings, and they extend from one float to the other, entirely about the circumference of the float 1, and having the free terminal end in overlapping engagement with the under surface of a part of the straps which are suspended between the two floats, and se ourely held thereagainst by suitable clamps 14 and 15, so that the straps may be adjusted for regulating the depth that the person riding upon the machine will be in the water. I 1

In the operation of the improved swimming device as heretofore described, the person desiring to be propelled through the water will lie upon the straps 12 and 13, and operate the crank handles 6 and 7, which will in turn rotate the shaft 10 through the medium of the bevel gear 8 and the bevel pinion 9, which will operate the propeller 11 for propelling the swimming device through the water. The crank handles 6 and 7 are positioned forwardly of the ends of the floats, so that the floats will not interfere in the operation thereof.

In reducing the invention to practice, certain minor features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts may necessitate alteration, to which the patentee is entitled, provided such alterations are comprehended within the scope of what is claimed.

What is claimed is In a swimming device, a plurality of floats, brackets connecting said floats, a substantially U-shaped bracket connected centrally to the under surface of one of said first mentioned brackets, a plurality of op- .positely disposed; crankhandles jcurnaled and a flexible strap adjust-ably secured in said U-sha 36d bracket a 'ear Wheel around said floats.

mounted on said crank and disposed between In testimony whereof I affix my signature 1said U-shaped bracket,fla shaft extending in presence of Witnesses. 5 ongitudinally of said oats and rotatably T supported by said first and second men- WALTER BROSSMAL' tioned brackets, a propeller at one end of Witnesses:

said shaft and a gear'wheel 0n the opposite ROY BnossMAN, end, said gear Wheelto mesh With the'gear MARIAN HALL, 10 carried by the crank for rotating said shaft, P. D. NELSON.

Gopies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents.

- Washington, D. C. 

